A few of my favourite things
Here are some one minute audios about special things in my life. Listen and read the texts. Then make questions and discuss them. What can you remember? Talk about special things in your life.
A Wedding Day
April 2nd 1988 was our wedding day It was the biggest day of our lives. My fiance and I stood in front of our families and friends in her church in south west London. She looked absolutely beautiful in her wedding dress (don’t all brides). Friends said I looked really sharp in my blue suit and red bow tie.
On that day we made promises to love and care for each other for the rest of our lives. All our family and friends were there to witness those promises. They joined us for the reception afterwards. We had food and drink, and laughter and tears. We had family and friends, and a lovely day. But best of all we had a new life together.
A New Country
In the 1950’s when my mum and dad came to the UK most people came by ship. Many arrived at Southampton and travelled up to London by train. They had left their families and friends behind in the West Indies to come to a very different country. It was a land where nearly all of the faces were white. The people lived close together in long rows of terraced houses. They travelled on packed rush hour trains. It was a land where smoke puffed out of thousands of chimneys on cold snowy winter nights.
Through all of these changes, challenges and difficulties these newcomers held onto their dreams of a new and better life in the UK.
The Playground
Our school playground was always noisy. We played football, chased each other and played many games. Sometimes we just stood and told jokes or chanted and sang songs. There was just so much noise. I think it was like an explosion of energy. When the playtime bell sounded we poured into the playground looking for friends and fun. There were some quiet areas in corners and behind buildings. Some boys and girls stood there and watched everybody else. Perhaps they were shy or maybe they were just happy to think and chill out. Who knows? There was so much noise.
A Fiftieth Birthday
My fiftieth birthday party was a precious time. Friends and family arrived at our house at different times during the day. There was lots of food and chatter throughout the afternoon and evening.
We spread ourselves all over the house. I thought of how blessed I was. I had all of these people in my life. We remembered my childhood, teenage and university years. We also thought about years of marriage, work, and parenthood.
Fifty years is 18,262 days. What a lot of days. What a lot of memories. My birthday party helped me to count those days and to understand them too.
Travelling in London
Most of my travelling in London is done by bike. Getting to work by bike is easy and I never get stuck in traffic. For longer distances I often go by car. But driving in the rush hour can be very very slow. Getting around by bus isn’t hard at all. I think it’s amazing that I can look on my phone to see when the next one will arrive. The London underground system is fast and easy too. I know all of the lines and loads of stations.
There are other ways of getting around London. But the one form of transport I’ve never used is the cable car across the River Thames. Maybe one day I’ll use this too.
The First Baby
There was lots of pushing, pain and encouragement in that delivery room. But at last he came. The midwife cleaned them off wrapped him up and gave him to us. It was so exciting. We were holding our first born son. Neither my wife nor I had ever had feelings like this before. We held this bundle of life and thought of his smallness. We studied his tiny fingers and his bright eyes. We watched him squirm and wriggle. We listened to his cries and breaths. They were too wonderful. We stopped, prayed and thanked God for our wonderful gift.
It's Christmas
For many people in the United Kingdom the 25th of December is a special day. It is Christmas Day. As a child I often woke up early on Christmas morning excited about what presents were under the Christmas Tree in the front room. The house was decorated with tinsel and lights and stars.
Christmas Day was always a family day. In the afternoon we all opened our presents. After that we sat down for a big family meal of turkey and stuffing. Mum had been cooking all morning. After dinner we listened to the Queen’s Speech. Sometimes we would have visitors too.
In the background was the music of Christmas carols celebrating the birth of Jesus. Christmas was always a very exciting and busy time.